This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Within My Heart
Bethany House; Original edition (September 1, 2010)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

These awards include the 2009 and 2008 Christy Award, the 2007 RITA for Best Inspirational Romance, the 2009 and 2007 Gayle Wilson Award of Excellence, 2007 Bookseller’s Best Award, and Library Journal’s Top Christian Fiction for 2006, among others.
After living in Colorado for seventeen years, Tamera has returned to her Southern roots. She and her husband now make their home in Nashville with Tamera’s father, Doug. They enjoy life there with Joe and Tamera’s two adult children, and Jack, a precious—and precocious—silky terrier.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Determined to fulfill her late husband’s dream, Rachel Boyd struggles to keep her ranch afloat with the help of her two young sons. But some days it feels as though her every effort is sabotaged. When faced with a loss she cannot afford, she’s forced to trust Rand Brookston, the one man in Timber Ridge she wishes to avoid. And with good reason. He’s a physician, just like her father, which tells her everything she needs to know about him. Or so she thinks . . .
Dr. Rand Brookston ventured west with the dream of bringing modern medicine to the wilds of the Colorado Rockies, but the townspeople have been slow to trust him. Just as slow in coming is Rand’s dream to build the town a proper clinic. When a patient’s life is threatened, Rand makes a choice—one that sends ripples through the town of Timber Ridge. And through Rachel Boyd’s stubborn heart.
From the beloved, bestselling author of From a Distance and Beyond This Moment comes an unforgettable story about faith in the face of fear, about tarnished hopes and second chances, and ultimately about the resilient courage and tenacity of hearts broken––and mended––by love.
If you would like to read the first chapter of Within My Heart, go HERE.
MY REVIEW:
I have been a fan of Tamera Alexander since her first book and have come to expect a rewarding experience with each subsequent book. Within My Heart met my expectations and more. Set amid the majestic beauty of the Colorado Rockies, Within My Heart is an emotionally charged story that takes the reader from laughter to tears in a heartbeat. Realistically portrayed characters and situations add a depth that allows the reader to become immersed in the life of Timber Ridge. Secondary characters play an important role throughout.
As Rachel struggles to keep her late husband’s legacy alive for her sons, she is met at every turn by increasing difficulties that include loss of cattle, a trouble-making son who is growing more distant by the day, a personal injury that limits her mobility, and dear friends facing certain heartbreak. Her life is further complicated by a growing attraction to Dr. Rand Brookston but she is afraid to trust him due to past hurts. Rand has a few secrets of his own.
Will Rachel ever recognize that Rand is not like her father and learn to trust him? Will she find forgiveness for the man she holds responsible for her husband’s death? Will Rand overcome the terrors that haunt his nights? Can Rachel let go of her husband’s dream in order to live out her own? For the answers to these questions in addition to a marvelously touching story, be sure to pick up a copy of Within My Heart.